


Elevators

by Featherly



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-15
Updated: 2016-10-15
Packaged: 2018-08-22 11:26:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8284172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Featherly/pseuds/Featherly
Summary: Jason laughed at Dick over his stupid fear of elevators. 
He just didn't know.





	

“This is NOT gonna be as fun as seeing Bruce at night.” said a 12 year old Jason to a 14 year old Dick, who was straightening out his tie. Wayne tower was almost in sight.

“No, it never is. It’s just a publicity stunt really, but if we didn’t do this, we wouldn’t even have our nighttime activities to look forward to.” He decided the tie looked good enough. “I thought you would be excited to see inside for the first time.” 

“Oh yeah, I just love having people take pictures of me for half an hour while I say nothing.” Jason rolled his eyes before saying that he couldn’t smile for 10 minutes straight, let alone 30. Dick found this amusing.

Jason had been adopted by Bruce Wayne 6 months prior, and Batman two months after that. It was now time to introduce the youngest member of the Wayne family to the world, since he was going to assist in maintaining one of the largest industries in the world some day in the future. Bruce decided it would be best to do it from the comfort of his tower in the highest part not accessible to the public, but accessible to the press on occasions.

Alfred parked the car in the underground lot and watched the boys walking towards the guards standing in front of the elevator. Jason was in front, though it was obvious he was less enthused about the trip, whereas Dick walked slower. Alfred knew exactly why, and felt a deep bout of sympathy.

The elevator only went to the first floor of the building. From there were many other elevators made for different sectors, depending on where the occupant wanted to go.

The guards with Jason and Dick put a keycard on the pad next to the one they wished to use, and the cables could be heard bringing down the metal box which would carry them to Bruce.

Jason stepped inside the second the door opened, but Dick stood outside it staring in, white as a ghost.

The doors began to close but stopped when Jason put his hand out. “Dick? Come on” but the older didn’t move.

The guards looked at each other with an intolerant look. One rolled their eyes. They had plenty of other things they could be doing at that moment, but couldn’t because this kid wouldn’t get in the damn box.  
“I... I don’t want to.” was all Dick said. His breathing had changed so that he was breathing in deep, and breathing out hard. He was very aware of it.

“Dick, come on! What’s gotten into you?”

“Can’t we take the stairs, please?”

“No way, there’s like a billion floors in this place!”

Jason was becoming inpatient. You wanna take the stairs then go for it. But we only have 5 more minutes to get there.

A woman went to step into the elevator with Jason, but was stopped by a guard. 

“sorry mam, but only one credential can proceed at a time. I’ll need to check your papers while these kids go up.”

“Yeah Dick, stop being a pussy. You’re holding up the line.”

Though Jason said it so that only Dick could hear it, all eyes were on him. He was holding up everyone else, and would hold up Bruce if he delayed any longer.

He stepped onto the elevator and ran straight into the corner where he ducked down with his hands above him, gripping the bar there as tightly as he could with white knuckles. Jason watched him as if he were someone unpleasant he had never met before.

“What’s with the spazz act?” asked Jason as the doors closed. Dick didn’t look up or acknowledge that Jason had spoken. He just focused on himself, controlled his breathing.

“Seriously Dick, what the hell is this? You’re not scared of elevators are you?” 

Dick continued to look down. His hair was right over his face so it couldn’t be seen.

“Oh my god you are!” cried Jason with a humoured air. He gently kicked Dick in the side and laughed. The great Dick Grayson, afraid of an elevator.

“It’s not even scary, especially not this expensive one. No way it’s gonna break.” said the younger before he began jumping. He jumped in a circle around the enclosed space to prove it wasn’t going to snap, finishing crouched right in front of Dick. “You’re being stupid about it.”

Dick still refused to move. Jason couldn’t see it, but the older boy was crying behind his dark bangs. His sobs started around halfway to their destination, and it was then that Jason decided he was being unreasonable.

“Woa, you’re really scared of elevators this much?” asked Jason, finally feeling a sense of guilt. Dick continued to cry. It became harder and harder as time went by. Jason retreated to the opposite corner of the space, leaning on the bar there casually. Dick was a mess, and Jason was very aware that it was his fault.

When the elevator finally stopped, dick was the first one out, even though Jason was right next to the door.

There was a crowd on either side of the space sitting in chairs facing the man at the front eagerly. They all turned and watched as the doors opened, hoping the reason they were gathered there was going to come out. They forgot this momentarily however, when the oldest son, the one they had met 4 years prior, ran out of the space before the doors were completely open, ran up the runway between them, hurdled onto the stage, and almost knocked the impossibly large Bruce Wayne over as he threw his arms around him.

Jason wandered up the runway too, but stopped short of the stage and simply watched.

Bruce held Dick close as he continued to sob, his shoulders heaving, his cries the only sound on the floor. Bruce rubbed the back of Dick’s neck to comfort him. “Shh Dick, it’s okay. You’re here now. Shh.”  
Bruce leaned his head on Dick’s and they stayed that way until Dick began to visibly calm down. This is when Bruce pulled the boy away, keeping his hands on Dick’s shouders.  
“Why didn’t you take the stairs?”

“We would have been late.”

“The press conference started 5 minutes ago. It wouldn’t have made a difference... Do you want to go home?” 

“No. I'll sit over there while you do your thing. I might get involved later.”

Bruce nodded understandingly, and took his hands off his adopted son with difficulty. Jason looked at them with puzzlement. He had no idea what had just happened.

“Jason, come on up.” said Bruce with an outstretched hand and a completely changed demeanor. “I assume everyone else is here now. The elevator has been locked though, so it doesn’t really matter.” and he went into a speech about Jason, his future in Wayne enterprises, and how welcomed he hopes the boy is. Then he opened up to questions.

“What does all of this mean for your other ward?” “how do you intend to train Jason there in such an overwhelming industry?” “Will Richard be as important to the enterprise now you have another son?” 

Dick was in as many questions as Jason. This made him uncomfortable. This was meant to be about Jason...

All three Wayne boys were relieved when it was over. He allowed reporters to leave at the elevator’s capacity, but with how high up they were it still took too long for everyone to leave.

Finally alone when the elevator returned to their floor empty, Jason walked towards it, but stopped when he saw Bruce and Dick heading towards the fire escape. “Hey, wait! What’s the big deal? We have to take the stairs because he’s scared of elevators? You know how long it takes to get down there on the cables, how long would it take to walk down stairs??” 

Dick and Bruce made eye contact with each other. Dick nodded and continued for the stairs. It was as if they had had an entire conversation in those few seconds without saying a word. Jason would be a liar if he said he wasn’t jealous.

“Come on Jason. We can take the elevator.” Bruce put a hand on his back and encouraged him towards the open doors.

They stood there silently for a while before Bruce finally spoke. 

“How much do you know about where Dick came from?”

“Well, he was an acrobat in the circus, his parents died, you took him in. Easy.”

“That is correct. Do you know how his parents died?”

“No... I thought it would be rude to ask. Plus I didn’t want to upset him.”

“His act was called the flying Graysons. They worked the trapeze. They were incredible, flawless. It was impossible for them to fall. The circus knew this, so they acted without a net.  
One night in Gotham, I saw them. They were amazing. Honestly, Dick’s been holding back his abilities... That night that I saw them is the night his parents died. They were killed by a thug, Tony Zucco. He loosened the bolts on the trapeze, and they fell. Dick was on the platform next to them waiting for his que, and he saw them fall, and he saw them hit the ground.”

Jason considered this for a moment. “But this elevator wont fall. It’s completely safe. It’s impossible!” 

“Exactly. This elevator shouldn’t fall. It IS completely impossible.”

Jason finally understood.


End file.
